Munich, Germany

We were in Munich around the time Pope Benedict XVI visited last year. Alas it was a few weeks too early for us to partake in Oktoberfest. We made our exit just before the Pope was due to arrive, otherwise we would have been stuck in the city centre surrounded my soldiers and worshippers - what a nightmare that would have been!

This picture shows the new Town Hall tower. It was a wonderful sunny day with an intense blue sky. The tops of the colourful flags are just above the dias that was in place for His Holiness, which of course spoilt my photo op for the entire Town Hall
Even though we were unable to enjoy the delights of the biggest beer festival in the world we still enjoyed a little of the atmosphere by visiting the Hofbräuhaus for some beer and excellent food. Here is the oompapa band that was playing.
We had a picnic in the Englischer Garten or English Garden. Which was lovely, except for all the ravens that had no fear of us big pink things on two legs, so we were forced to feed them or become a real life version of The Birds. We were also intrigued by the nude sunbathers on the other side of the stream. Much to He Who Shall Not Be Named's disappointment most of them were middle aged men!

Here's a picture taken in the opposite direction to the nude pink/brown things from our picnic spot

The Grand Mosque, Muscat, Oman

This is one of the most beautiful Mosques I have ever seen, so here are some pictures

I find the picture of this arch soothing - a bit crazy, no?
The opulent chandelier inside the central dome

Unknown Cat in Petra, Jordan

I'm using this cute guy as my avatar at the moment (better than a shot of my scary mug:). So, I thought I would do him some justice by giving him a bigger picture here on my blog. He was on our hotel balcony wall when we came back from seeing the sites of Petra.

He was lovely and so photogenic that I couldn't resist some camera action.

Kinver Edge, UK

I'm not a fan of walking ......or any exercise for that matter. I think of myself as subscribing to the anti-exercise movement. I don't like sports either, which in turn makes me feel a little un-australian. As a society we are suppose to love exercise and sports. We excel at growing tall in the sunshine and beating other countries at 'their' sports. I can't understand either of the rugby's, cricket bores me, swimming and athletics -excuse me while I supress a yawn. Tennis is all right in small doses, say once a year - except for all that unnecessary grunting, the mute button is my friend when Wimbledon is on. But I feel more than a little un-australian and I'll tell you why:

1. Hatred of almost all sports and exercise (see above paragraph for pre-ramble)


2. I'm not that tall


3. I hate the beach...and the sun. Going to the beach is torture. You get sand places it shouldn't be, you are suppose to lie there cooking your skin in the HEAT risking cancer and the sea is like hot salty water. Why I ask you, Why?


4. I hate beer


5. I have to admit that when I first go home to visit the accent grates on me a bit. I know, I'm ashamed of me too


6. Going back to number one and I'll say this quietly I like watching soccer. Though Australia did make it to the last World Cup, something I was very proud of. By the way, we were robbed by the cheats that are the Italian team.....that's all I'm going to say on the subject because I have been known to 'get nasty' when riled up about this

So what has this got to do with Kinver Edge I hear you ask - well we went for a walk there yesterday and it wasn't that bad. Thinking about posting about it made me think of the above and well whatever happens to be at the front of the cue in the mess that is my brain needs to be expressed first.

The edge allowed great views of the Staffordshire countryside. Great rolling hills and lots of green. The UK might have 60 million people in it and be seen to be bursting at the seams, but I for one thank whoever there is to thank that most of the inhabitants of these isles are concentrated in congested cities. It's great to go out and see space.

Even though I enjoyed some of my outing it was still exercise so I was concentrating so hard on putting one foot in front of another without becoming angry* that the camera rarely made an appearance. However I did get a couple of shots and here they are:

On the site are the Holy Austin rock houses where people lived until the 1950'sA thistle.......and it's purple :)

* I get angry when I have to do anything remotely exercise like - it's stupid I know but I feel like a little kid who's being punished for something. He Who Shall Not Be Named loves climbing mountains and hills and spends hours badgering me into it. By the time I get to the top I'm ready to explode - I just don't see the point. Sure occasionally the view will be nice, but this is England so most of the time the weather is shitty and you can't see a thing. I'm meant to feel a sense of 'achievement' or something, but I always feel somehow cheated.

Things in my Backyard, UK

Out of the English drizzling rain of the last few weeks came a day of glorious sunshine

so out came the camera

(then the lawnmower)

I love mushrooms, their shape is so pleasing to the eye

I saved it when I mowed by leaving a little patch of uncut grass around, like a little mushroom shrine

then my cat Oberon hunted it down and killed it

I love daisies and feel like such a murderer when I have to mow the lawn :(

I don't know what this flower is but I love the way the light works in this picture and it's purple - who doesn't love purple!

Pisa, Italy

one of my 'arty' shots of the Cathedral

Darwin, Australia

I took this while visiting the clan in 2004 at the recently open but looooong awaited train station in Palmerston.

I did have to photoshop out a whistling street lamp that just happened to be passing, I think it was trying for photo action

Jebal Aktar, Oman

Along with trees I love to take pictures of textures

these are some wire cables we found while picnicking on the mountain side

Petra, Jordan - to celebrate being named one of the New 7 Wonders

Our 'Indian Jones Moment' (albeit after our day at Petra as I was too overawed to take a good shot when we came through so took this one as we were leaving!)

My first ever attempt at Photoshop - there were lots of annoying tourists on the sand in the bottom right hand corner - how dare they ;)

View the other New 7 Wonders of the world here

Omani Fort, Bousher, Muscat

If you like shopping Dubai or Abu Dhabi are the places to go, but if you want friendly locals, amazing landscapes and a vibrant culture - go to Oman.

Purple Flower, Bodelwyddan Castle

Monument Valley, USA

Yallingup Point, Western Australia

I love taking photos of trees and wood, I think it's because they can look so creepy and skeletal yet be so beautiful

Tia

Oberon's nose and mouth

Pictures

I like to take pictures

I have a blog that is neglected

Merge the two

wallah

Where have I been?

A bloggers holiday?

I read this in many posts, though most are only a holiday of a month or so. Really I've been on a blog abandonment stint. You get all fired up, you create the blog, swear faithfully that you will post every day....then every other day...once a week....once a month.

Then the whistling in your mind starts. The kind of whistle where you know there is something you should be doing but instead you are trying to ignore it. Then something distracts you, a new interest - perhaps downloading movie scripts, searching for exotic recipes, creating words by closing your eyes and hitting a few keys and coming up with 'jfkeo' then googling it to see if there is any other reference to it anywhere on the web. Which there are! How about another shot 'ueiroh', nope nothing that time. See how easy it is to be distracted? But it keeps the fledgling blog out of your mind.

And once you have forgotten there are the virtual tumbleweeds that roll through your blog on winds of loneliness

..........tumbleweed.....................................................a circling vulture.......................another tumbleweed...................................

Very sad, like an abandoned puppy with big eyes and a sad expression, just hoping someone will came and pick you up and give you a cuddle.

So that's what this is: a blog cuddle

Hopefully to be followed by a couple more cuddles and then perhaps I'll let the blog move in and give it daily affection

perhaps........

Englishness - Pub Rules

I’m now up to page 267 (‘Watching the English’ by Kate Fox). In the last 17 pages there has been a lot that I’ve identified with e.g. shopping and some stuff I haven’t identified with e.g. pet rules or ‘petiqiette’…..

The most interesting part of all has been the part on Pub Rules. I always had the sneaking suspicion that as a women (who is also part of a couple) my turn at buying a round in England was always hastily and embarrassedly fobbed off. To begin with I thought maybe it was because I was not drinking as much as them, but then realised I was drinking as much, maybe even more. After a while I just gave my money to the other half and told him to get the round in. Never any squabbles there, but of course now he feels he’s been cheated – every round in three instead of four…..even though I pointed out it was my money which really was his round in four - he’s an accountant so there’s no telling him really.

I was never a drinker in Australia (always the designated driver) so can’t tell you if there is any aversion to us girlies buying a round. Though I do always remember that the guys bought rounds just like England, but the added wild card was who ever had to go for a pee first bought jugs of beer for everyone. It used to get pretty funny with them all holding it and waiting for the weakest one to try and sneak off – they’d lie in wait and as soon as who ever the poor hapless one was they would pour into the loo and all have their FFP (first fatal piss).

How did I go from talking about round buying to guys’ lavatory antics??

Englishness

I’m currently reading a fascinating book called ‘Watching the English’ by Kate Fox. It alludes to the subtle English rules of interaction, humour and irony as well as, I’m sure, many other interesting things………….I’m only up to page 250 and there’s a lot more to go.

What prompted me to make this entry was how English my social interactions are, how I observe these unspoken laws with regards to conversation, behaviour and humour…………….and how I am not actually ‘English’.

I’ve always been a bit….out of place so to speak when I interact with other nationalities outside Australia, my home. Living as an expatriate, first in the UK and now in the Middle East, I just don’t fit the Aussie ‘type’.

I am useless in social situations and will sit in an unobtrusive corner for an entire evening rather than try and interact with another human being who I don’t know. Even the awkward looking person in the other corner is too scary a proposition to approach. Australians are known for being friendly, sociable, boisterous and always socially adapt at getting to know everyone – who we will, inevitably, end up calling mate. The surprise when people find out my nationality is usually audible – and that’s before they even find out that I don’t drink beer, hate the sun and am not into sports! Those revelations usually lead to a “are you sure you’re Australian” in a joking but really I’m serious sort of tone.

Once people get to know me I’m the typical Aussie………minus the beer, sun and sports - hey sun and sports as some sort of torture device devised by our English forbearers to punish us in the long run for being criminals but getting to live in a vast, sunny country. Beer smells and tastes like puke…come on, you know it’s true why not admit it.

Let’s just say it’s got me thinking………and when I do go to Oz this year I’ll be people watching like you won’t believe. However I’m not sure now if I want to find out the Aussie myth is real or not – I kind of like being unexpected …….or as an extremely good friend once said “you’re just on a different radio station to the rest of us”